Cherries
by ImagineI
Summary: When Marian goes through with the wedding, new threats rise and passions evoke truths both unexpected and unwelcome. Whose shadows are on the bed curtains? Where will Love plunge its next sword? Rated T for love scenes.
1. Numbness Stumbled

Set during Season One, Marian has married Guy. Please read and review, this will turn into a multi-chapter story. Thank you ^.^

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><p><span>Guy<span>

The day had been beautiful. God- be it Allah or Jehovah or any God thereafter or before- had blessed Locksley with sun, birdsong, cheer in people's hearts where there had previously been no capacity when concerning me.

Marian would fix all. Just as I wished to care for her, protect her… heal her in any way I could… that was, if there was anything of her to polish.

She was faultless, though. Not a petal of her personality was stained with expiration, her age became her instead of ruined her. She was a woman- yes, a woman now and if not now, soon enough as I saw to by husbandly duties- who I would proudly walk to court with on my arm. Pretty soon now, she would be in my arms. For good.

Her words at the altar had been simple and content enough. I had tried my best not to be intimidated by the cross around the priest's neck and reminded myself that it was a theme of blasphemy to think that Vasey was akin to Satan; Vasey was nothing.

I made an effort, though I lost the trial, to ignore the forced smile that had been on Marian's face for the duration of the hours we had so far spent together. But, could you truly call a smile a smile when it is filled with such silent mourning?

I was conflicted with how I should act. Should I pretend to be ignorant of her love for Hood? Or, should I confront her about it?

I felt, in my gut and heart, that she was marrying me _for_ Hood, in some way. I felt part of some intricate heist.

But I did not care if I was the fool in this matter. I would, definitely, in any other matter. But with her canorous glory at my side, the days of fiery debates to anticipate and the warmth of her purity…

I could not care if I was to be killed at the end of this day. For, this day- this holy, sanctified, aseptic day- was to be the one that began to lift the sins off my scales for judgement day.

"A fine girl, Gisborne. Though I wouldn't have thought she of all people would have gone for _you_." I agreed, whole-heartedly with the pompous Lord who was looking up at me, sunlight bouncing off his egg-like head.

I grit my teeth- today, I would not let go of this _goodness_. But, surprisingly, someone came to my rescue.

"Trust me, I'm surprised as anyone that he, of all people, took _me_."

I stared at Marian- at her ringlets of glossy, brown hair and her dark, mossy eyes- allowing only for seconds to show my shock at her words.

Lord Up-Himself raised his eyebrows.

"You'll have fun tethering and taming this mare, Guy." I licked my lower lip, grip on my goblet tightening as I stared out at the huddles of people filling the green around Locksley Manor. I held back my snarl- for Marian's sake more than anything. _I will contain my temper._

"I like my head where it is, sir. Besides, I did not marry her for her compliance. I married her for _her_."

Marian seemed equally shocked at my words, although she turned her emotions to the ground and tucked her white veil behind her almost elfin ears.

Lord Unctuous had ambled away by this point, bored, and I took the opportunity to speak to my _wife_ alone for the first time in our marriage.

"Do you want to take off that veil?" I asked her, judging by the look of it that it was quite itchy.

She bared a glorious smile, red lips smooth to the eye… but it did not meet her eyes.

"I do not know if I am permitted to do so."

"As your husband-" did she flinch as I said that? – "My care is for your comfort… and that does not look comfortable." She held back a smile that told me I was right. "Turn around." She did so.

I leaned down and began to unhook the tiny, brass clips that held the netting to her hair, trying hard not to pull at the little hairs. My eyes wandered along the nape of her white neck, following the V of lighter hairs that travelled down, stopping at the top of her concealed spine…

When the veil had been released, I held it out to a passing maid and asked her to leave it in the entrance hall of Locksley.

Marian turned round.

We stared at one another for a few moments as the wind rustled pleasantly through the trees metres away.

I tried to keep my eyes accordingly on hers instead of letting them feast on her appearance.

"The gold… it becomes you," I gestured to her dress.

"Thank you," she replied, ever civil. Her hand suddenly flitted towards me and my eyes widened as she froze… then continued with her action.

She stroked the red silk at my neck and it was then me who was frozen.

"A colour, at last, aside from that constant black."

"Would you prefer I wore gold?" I teased. I was anxious not to scare her so my voice was quieter than usual.

She laughed courteously and dropped her hand.

"It would make a… change."

I took a deep breath and clenched my teeth as she stood at my side.

_Three hours later_

The room was gilded with fulvous flickers that warbled on the walls like my heart in my chest.

How much longer would it take her to come here?

I rubbed my index finger with my thumb anxiously and debated with myself whether I should put a shirt or top on. Would it be better if I was bare-chested or clothed… what would worry her more? I was grateful I had a relatively robust, healthy body…

My legs tensed in my white cotton braies and I found myself staring at my bare feet-

Terrified, much like a small boy preparing for his first kiss.

I heard a swallow at my door and jumped out of my reverie, eyes swiftly moving to the door.

There she stood. She too was wearing white braies, but hers were silk and billowed out from her small waist, around her wide hips and to her ankles. Her feet, slender and white, were close together and as I stood- eyes roving to her chest where a white chemise sat, not covering her shoulders- her left foot moved nervously on top of her right.

Her chest was hardly rising at all but her breaths were quick and her eyes were set firmly to the wooden floor, her hands held modestly under her stomach. I noticed how she picked at the skin of her thumb.

Was she just as nervous as I?

Marian

_Do not cry, Marian. Face your duties. Do not think of Robin… do not think of him… think of your duties… breathe, breathe, breathe…_

I stood at the doorway and looked at Guy, sitting with his wide, muscled chest exposed. The fire of the candles lit him in a heated orange glow. He was undeniably attractive, any other maid would gladly take up this role…

But I could not stop the slivers of fear rolling over my bare shoulders, feet and hands.

I tried to gulp away my dread at the prospect of having to be so near him, so intimately… and before I had even been like this with Robin…

I could not hide my gulp. His head turned to the door and I shot my eyes down to the floor; I could not look at him.

My breasts, unsupported, felt colder as he stood up from the bed and stepped toward me.

His long, toned arms swung slightly at his side as he came closer and I concentrated my sights on his fingers-

_God, where did I have to let those fingers roam?_

I did not know the correct protocol for such a situation and felt instinctively that it was mainly up to Guy to perform his side first. I knew very little of how to correctly act out my part… did he? Surely, he must do, after the rumours that flitted around the castle. Something at the back of my mind twinged as I recalled whispered giggles and fluttering eyelids when he prowled the hallways; I wondered if I had ever been like those women- whether I had acted so flirtatiously unconsciously.

I had been aware when I had tried to seduce him but my motives had not been truthful; was this God's reprimand for my perjury?

Before I had time to prepare myself properly for Guy's touch, his hand was on my arm. I felt his warm, rough thumb rub over my bare shoulder and closed my eyes in dismay as my squirm escaped me.

We both stood still, only the wind outside and our breathing filling the space with sound. Soon, I could hear my heartbeat as it pounded it panic, heart scared of the unfamiliar touch that was not Robin's gentle caress.

I found that Guy was more than capable of being gentle. He gingerly lowered his head and looked, eyelids hooded, into my eyes, both his hands moving to rest on my hips. His lips neared mine and I inhaled, nostrils filled with smells of cinnamon and wine. Shockingly, this scent sent a pleasured zing down the middle of my body, which buzzed slowly as his lips pressed on mine. The rest of his body remained an inch from me. But no matter his gentleness, I still wanted to bolt from the room and bathe a thousand times to rid myself of the tormenting sensation that spiders were crawling across my skin.

My hands balled into fists at my sides as I felt him kiss across my cheek, unshaved skin grazing my jaw, up to my ear, behind it, down my neck…

I bit my lip. Hard.

I held back my stinging tears and complied, numbly, as his hands splayed in both of mine, his nails dragging over my palms…

But this motion did not displease me. In fact, it pushed a subconscious part of me to hold tightly onto his hands for comfort. My numbness stumbled somewhere in my chest, unsure as to where it should tread now that my mind was changing.

His breath tremoured on my shoulder and I felt goose-bumps rise. One hand moved from my hip to the spot and stroked slowly as he turned my body with his, walking me backwards and kissing my mouth lighter and lighter, teasing and encouraging me to make a move. He was being… patient. Was this possible?

I did not like walking backwards and, somehow, Guy sensed it.

He moved from me and I swallowed again incredulously as my body swayed towards his, almost rueful at his departure.

He sat at the end of the bed and looked into my eyes, imparting a message to me that for a long while I simply did not comprehend.

He reached out his hand, offering it for mine and I dolefully consented. With the smallest of tugs he indicated that I should move toward him and I did…

Absolutely fascinated with his gentleness. So much so that the tears nearing the edge of my eyes seemed to come for relief and awe and not despair and heartache.

My mouth opened of its own accord and I watched Guy's pupils dilate. As his thumb smoothed my knuckles, I examined his linear nose and unconsciously let my shoulders drop, the deep blue of his eyes hypnotising me in such a surreal way that I hardly noticed him part his legs.

"Turn around," he whispered, his eyebrows slanting with a feline grace I had not noticed before now. Prior to this unprecedented moment, he had seemed predatory in a beastlike manner. Never had I felt this primal urge, pulsing so slightly under my ribcage… never, even, with Robin.

Robin… I had forgotten him so quickly…

Guy

I tried to work slowly, patiently. I would not go too fast and scare her. Safety: that was what I offered.

She was, it appeared, stunned. Like a drugged animal, she moved around me, tensing often as I kissed her skin and stroked her body through those undergarments.

Heaven could offer me no greater requital; nothing could compare to her dream-like splendor, her curved frame and scent.

I was in awe of how far she let me go. It was so unlike Marian to go down without a fight. I'd expected a row and I'd been served with a scarily uncharacteristic quiet that unnerved me.

But I kept my slow pace, tried to read her tiny gestures, attempting to find movements she liked; she enjoyed.

That first kiss had set a dulcet silence upon the night that I could not equivocate.

As I stood by her, momentarily admiring the curve of her breasts beneath her chemise exposed through the fabric by the candles, her lips parted. They were so full, so tempting...

She stiffened as I had walked her toward the bed- would it be better for her to be in control? That was her general preference...

I returned to my seat at the foot of the bed and my throat tightened- another layer floated to the top of the love I had for her. My body ached to take her quickly, roughly- but her pain was out of the question and I was certain her chastity was not yet purged- it would be sinful for me to covet her so selfishly.

I wanted to get that chemise off her, though. Wanted to see more of this delicate beauty. Maybe if I kissed her more intimately, seduction would be easier.

I reached out my hand and hers fell gracefully into mine, like a floating leaf. I felt the pulse of her heart, deep and rising, through her finger.

Her body relaxed as I intensified my stare.

"Turn around," I whispered, for the second time that day- were my intentions just as good as this afternoon? I checked myself.

It was all going so peacefully, so calmly-

Then she freaked, a spooked horse terrified by a rustling in the bushes. An instinctive snare snapped inside me and my light hold on her hand turned to a tight grip that even I winced at.

I had no clue what to do from there.

"Guy-" her voice was shaky and almost inaudible. A shiver ran down my spine as I heard the fear.

No. I would not lose her now, not when I was so close.

"Marian," I threatened, though truthfully the threat was empty. This was going to take more effort. I could already see regret in her eyes. "You're not being honest with me," I said, slowly.

"Where did that come from?" she asked as I let her hand go.

"You've had that look in your eyes most of the day. Do not start our marriage with deceit."

She began to breathe quickly through her mouth.

"I am true-"

"To who? Your husband?" Shut up, shut up, shut up!

"Do not put pressure on me." Her eyebrows shot up then down on the word 'pressure' and she seemed to cut the word from the air with a swift blow of her hand, her lips thinned.

I shot up and stared her down, arousal turning to frustration.

"Tell me the truth," I snarled, voice just louder than a whisper.

"I. Have."

My stomach tightened and my nostrils flared quickly. I inclined my head, eyes penetrating hers as humiliation bubbled from a bottled prison in my chest. Ignore or confront? Fate had chosen the latter.

"To Hood!"

She paled at this and her once warming eyes were now cold and alarmed.

"I am not in contact with the outl-"

I glared at her and she fell quiet.

"Waiting for me to fall asleep so you can run to him and weep about my brutality?" I shouted, walking around her to the chair by the door. I took a black thermal undertop from the back of it and yanked it on as she stood there, shoulders shaking with her breaths.

She turned and raised her hands to her chest, fingers pointed to me as she tried to dig herself out of this one.

"Guy, I-"

"Spare me the sob story and get out," I spat. We were both shocked at that. No, no! I thought. Idiot! "Wait," I said as she began to move. My eyes closed on the word and I pictured a way to sort this out without her leaving.

Guy

His eyes opened as my arms dropped to my sides; I tried to stay confident and not quiver in his presence like a berated dog. But the way his chest heaved with his anger made me shrink inside- there was a reason why Vasey chose Guy for the torture rituals. I was married to this... This for the rest of my life, temper always chasing his goodness away.

I had not yet admitted contact with Robin and I intended to keep it that way.

I needed Guy to bed me so he would believe in this marriage, so the mirage was complete. Words did not come though. Lying, after being so suddenly enchanted by Guy instead of loathing him, had become impossible. It made me hate him even more and I shook as I randomly remembered how he had slapped my father.

"I will not wait for a cur!"

His mouth curved up to the right, left side slack and his now slitted eyes moved to the floor. He shook his head and his thick black locks tousled over his forehead. His chest puffed out. I recognised this: his anger was beginning to chill to plain, icy spite. The expression elicited a stir in my stomach but it was not one of hate... I could not place the emotion...

He looked up and his eyes were... Warm. He smiled and I could not detect his usual glint of pleasure before a stabbing insult. Instead, I saw defeat and sincerity. His hands clenched by his hips, tendons in his wrists tensing and biceps following suit. A gulp travelled down his throat, making his Adam's apple jump.

"Have you ever tried cherries?" Somehow it humoured me to hear such a fanciful question. I stared at him, confused.


	2. Pop And Chew

Hey there. To those readers that are returning to read this chapter, thank you ^.^ To those who have just joined us, here's a little note: This is set in series one and Marian has gone through with the marriage to Guy. Please read and review : )

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><p><span>Marian<span>

We wound up sitting on either side of the round table Guy had at his bedroom window. A pot bowl, painted sky-blue, sat on the wood between us. Dark red spheres, shiny and about the size of my curled index finger filled the bowl and I was curious whether this fruit held some mystic drug.

"Have you ever heard of them?" Guy asked, his pleasant nature still drawing on since ten minutes ago. He'd beckoned for a maid and asked her to bring him this bowl and I'd biddingly sat- afraid of the consequences had I not- at the table.

"Of course I've heard of them…" I muttered, searching his face for malice or trickery. But there was none. His mouth was perked into a smile I had never seen before; it was openly happy and sparked his eyes with more than the flames burning in the hearth.

He picked a cherry from the bowl and held it out to me. I looked at it and then down his fingers, expecting to see callous, rough skin. But Guy liked to take care of his outer appearance and I observed musician's hands- nimble and well-jointed. I saved this comparison to the back of my mind for later inspection.

Obliginginly, I took the cherry.

Guy

She really didn't trust me. Not one little bit. It made my insides crawl to think that I had been the one to make her distrust me.

She was sitting across from me with such stillness… like a doe catching scent of the hunter. Her arm was wrapped around her chest for modesty and I was about to offer her a blanket, when she gritted her teeth as her eyes fell on my fingers. It was only for ten seconds or so, but I swear by the Bible that I saw admiration in her green eyes, admiration that stunned me as she took the cherry from me.

I believed I was beginning to maintain some of the tranquility we had had but ten minutes before. She seemed shocked and wary, her shoulders tensed back up to their usual position. The memory of her shoulders dropping upon looking into my eyes smoothed across my mind…

"Is there a stone?" I nodded, trying to keep myself in this moment instead of the past. I would keep this placidity going. I would go to any effort to keep her content because truly… I could wait another night for that pleasure. So long as she was comfortable…

Marian

"Is there a stone?" I asked. He gave a shot, soft nod. We looked at one another for several seconds, me searching his eyes for anticipation of my downfall and he silently responding with nothing but peaceful joy.

He sensed my apprehension and took a cherry from the bowl and put it in his mouth. Inwardly, I was impressed that he did not take the opportunity- as was expected of him- to make the action a provocatively coy one. It was one simple pop and chew. I did not blink as I watched his face for reaction.

He raised one eyebrow, arching it pointedly when I remained staring at him. Sliding the small stone between his lips and taking it with his fingers to the table, he blinked and swallowed.

"What's bothering you?" He questioned, licking the purplish red juice from his lower lip.

"You," I replied instantly. He exhaled quietly through his nose and studied my stone-still frame.

"You usually move more when you're frustrated with me. Normally to the nearest exit. After a punchy quip or intricately hidden offense."

"That's when you're being… you! What's made you so… calm?"

"Marian, I do not wish to lose you and I pride myself with the knowledge that I may know you, just enough to know that… you're not like other women."

I turned my head and looked out to the night outside but was hard pushed to distinguish anything; all was black aside from a slither of purplish sky above the jagged forest.

"Believe it or not, Guy, every woman likes to be dealt with calmly just as any man likes to be treated with respect. The word shouldn't even be treated, though…"

He took a deep sigh.

"Eat the cherry, Marian."

"I do not love you."

Guy

Five words. Five little words, not visible to the eye or tangible; without scent…tasteless…

Yet they knuckle-punched my mind and incensed me, burning through my pores and leaving a sour taste on my tongue. A small bubble popped between my lips… the happy bubble crashed into nothingness.

My hands clenched into fists and I hung my head.

Fool.

I had always known she didn't love me. Why did hearing it make me feel such agony in my gut?

The space between my eyebrows began to throb, the oncoming of a headache.

"You choose to say this now…" I growled, low.

"I…"

Choking silence. Then,

"I didn't mean it, I just wanted to gauge your reaction, see what-"

"LIAR!" Chaotic rage seethed through the word and I belted it out with the small hope it would banish this sore anger. My head had snapped up of its own accord as I had yelled, in time for me to watch Marian, my wife, quiver in her seat for a second… and then bolt to the door.

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><p>Ok... Guy's angry.<p>

Guy: Understatement.

Ok, Guy's pissed off to the hilted breeches. Either way, please rate and review because constructive comments are one of the reasons why I write on this site. This fanfiction will turn into more than just conversation between Marian and Guy... hopefully ; )

Guy: So, let me get this straight- people are supposed to be entertained by my agony?

Err... when you put it like that-

Guy: I am a Lord of English Court, I own estate and have the power to torture you in the prison of Nottingham Castle-

*SPOILERS* You're dead, Guy! Please! Isabella killed you in, like, series 3! You should be grateful I'm marrying you to Marian and giving you a chance at getting laid by the girl of your leather-clad, sweaty fantasies!

Guy: ... Please rate and review ^ _ ^


	3. Stoked

Ok. So, Guy's attempting being nice and calm but has not so nicely and calmly sent Marian running away from him-

Guy: You try being calm when the love of your life denounces her love-

AND GUY REMAINS FESTERING IN HIS ROOM.

Guy: So if I don't behave here, you punish me?

Pretty much.

Guy: Doesn't sound very pretty to me.

I could do a lot worse... missing your sister? Fancy having a little slash with Robin? Would you want to be the dom or the sub?

Guy: RATE AND REVIEW THIS LOVELY PERSON'S WORK ^ _ ^

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><p><span>Marian<span>

WHY had I said that? What had come over me? Well, it had seemed like the logical thing to do. Absurdly. Horribly. Worryingly.

Maybe there had been something in that cherry. Or not, just my bizarre mind and tongue.

Either way, I had said it. For a few seconds I had anticipated some sort of relief at finally saying to Guy. But only guilt and fear had swamped my body.

Guy's yell still reverberated off my back and buzzed down my spine, pushing me further and further over the grounds and into the forest ahead. Running, sprinting, hurdling. The grass was damp, the land ahead mercilessly dark and cold. I found myself missing the fire in Guy's chamber.

I was still only in my chemise and braies but I felt sure Robin would be waiting somewhere near the outskirts of the woods so did not feel embarrassed… I prayed and prayed he was.

It was as I pushed a thorned branch aside just in time before it scraped my cheek, that I realised there were no hurried footsteps behind me. Guy wasn't chasing after me. I put my hand on rough bark and looked out to Locksley Manor now far away enough that I could fit it between my index finger and thumb if I held my hand up to my eye.

I swallowed and caught my breath, panting and tried to see if there were any guards hurrying my way. Nothing. No one.

"Either you're running from your abusive husband or he's into something equally as dark as he is when concerning matters of the bedroom."

Robin's voice did not scare me and his words barely caused a reaction inside me. I didn't care. I threw myself at him, arms around his back and cheek on his chest but then drew back hurriedly when I realised my immodest disposition.

Robin chuckled next to me- nothing more than a solid shadow, radiating warmth and safety- and draped his heavy, hooded cloak around my shoulders.

"Going on a solo honeymoon, are we?" he teased, but there was angst in his voice I couldn't miss.

"We haven't… I mean, I didn't…"

"Still _Maid_ Marian, are we?"

I gritted my teeth and pushed him away, pulling the cloak around me tighter and began to walk away from him. I tried not to wince as dry leaves prickled under my bare feet.

"Let's just go back to camp."

"By all means, lead the way, Lady Gisborne."

"Robin," I warned, squinting to make out some excuse of a leafy path. "Stop it."

He sighed and I heard foliage crackle as he made his way to me and placed a warm kiss on my cheek.

"At least allow me to carry you." I was going to protest and make out that I was more than capable of going barefoot across the coppice terrain. But the truth was, I wanted Robin holding me. I said nothing and he took my silence as a 'yes, please'.

Guy

I had done it. Finished it. _Executed_ it. Now I had lost her for good. A voice inside my head was berating me for not chasing after her, but I wanted to let her go. I _wanted_ her to be away from me, the beast who had tried to tame her.

Evidently, I had not managed to tame myself. I sat, hands clenched over my knees, staring at the fire. Out of the corner of my vision I had seen her blurred silhouette filter away into the darkness but had not looked directly at her disappearing figure.

"My Lord…" a low, slightly frightened voice came from the doorway. I chewed on the inside of my lip and swerved my eyes to see one of my useless guards standing there, his hands fiddling with his helmet by his chest.

"Yes?" I replied, feigning happiness.

"Your… your wife-"

"Yes?" I said again, in the same manner, standing up from my chair and slowly walking to the man at least half a foot shorter than I.

"She-"

"She what?" I glared down into his eyes, looked at his oily dark blonde hair and resisted the temptation to push him down the stairs in frustration. He gulped, sensing my anger.

My hand bolted out and pinned him to the doorframe by his throat.

"She has returned to her father's for the night, by my consent. Understand?" I hissed. The guard spluttered and tried to nod. I threw him away from me and watched him trip down the stairs.

I returned to my chair and seethed for the rest of the night. At one point I took the bowl of cherries and tipped them into the fire. They shimmered in the fiery glow for a moment before the flames engulfed them and they began to melt like candle wax, vermeil juices thickening and rolling over the logs.

Marian

"Were you just going to stay in that forest for the rest of the night?"

"Of course."

"Robin, you couldn't have stopped it."

"I know," he said, seriously, looking at me over the small fire in the centre of he and I. We were deeper in the forest now, far from Locksley. I was secretly impressed with how well Robin knew the forest at night.

I watched him stoke the fire for a few seconds with a prepared twig and then he looked back up at me, his unkempt beard looking redder than usual. "I wouldn't have inconvenienced your position in society for such a silly thing as love."

I hated it when Robin got spiteful. I would have preferred an argument, but he went down the road of sweetness obscuring vindictiveness.

"Robin, this will help us," I said quietly. "This will help the cause."

"Somehow the greater good does not seem so great with you wedded to another man."

"Barely. It's our wedding night and I'm in the middle of a dark forest with an outlaw."

"Our…"

"Yes, our. Husband and Wife. Accept it."

I watched him clench his jaw then throw the twig to the side. He put his hands on his thighs and his eyes turned demonically stern in the flickering firelight.

"You don't have to stay with him," he whispered, as though the trees would somehow betray him to Gisborne. "You could come with me, with the gang… help us, as the Night Watchman."

"Pfft, as if you would let me act. You'd sooner have me in that camp, stirring your supper and waiting to hear your tales of adventure."

"Is that such a bad thing?" he crooned.

"Yes, Robin. I am my own person."

"I know you-"

"Argh! If you did then you wouldn't be speaking to me so!"

"It's wishful thinking."

"It's fantasising." Only the bushes and trees whispered for a while before I spoke again. "I would have liked you as a Lord of Locksley. I would have liked you coming home to me, supper at our laps as we both regaled stories of good over evil. But that is a distant dream right now. We must settle for the present and do the best we can. I am married to Gisborne. But I…"

Robin stared at me.

"I do love you."

Robin could not hold back his soft smile. I smiled back, nervously; I could not be too happy right now, otherwise the plummet to misery would be further when some other disaster struck again.

"Then we must come up with a plan. For now."

I smiled gratefully at him.

"I will stay with Gisborne and attempt complicity with him and you. As his wife I will gain more information of the court and the Sheriff's plans."

Robin turned his head to the side and bit his upper lip.

"Will heard rumours of a transformation of the dining hall at Nottingham. Something to do with the arrival of some foreign rich man. If you can find out what cargo this man brings, that would be useful…"

"Certainly it would."

We watched each other in the dwindling flames. I watched sadness come over his face as he reached a hand out to me around the curve of the fire. I took his hand.

"You should return to Locksley, tonight." My breath caught as his statement but I knew he was right.

"I'll sleep in the stables, tonight."

"Did you and Gisborne have a row?"

"Something like that," I admitted. I should have told Robin what I had said to Guy, but some fate-elf had corked my honesty.

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><p>Please review, otherwise Guy stays horny.<p> 


	4. One, Silent, Soft

Hello kind readers and thank you all so much for your subscriptions to this story, your favouriting and of course your reviewing ^.^

Guy: So I don't stay horny?

Anyway, I would like to welcome more reviews- any comments, be it criticism or compliments, are very helpful to me.

Guy: Hey! Do I stay horny?

I would love to see what you think-

Guy: OI! Do I get laid?

And I'm sure if Guy behaves, I will redeem my pledge to...

Guy: To...?

Enjoy the chapter ^.^

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><p><span>Guy<span>

I woke up in my chair, the smoky scent of dead embers filling the room and a cool breeze whistling through the hole in my wooden windowpane.

I squeezed my eyes tightly shut in an attempt to lock out daylight and create my own eternal night. But I stopped myself when I realised I was being foolish- all this over a woman? Pfft.

But no. This was no just over a woman. This was Marian.

I cleared my throat and opened my eyes, pulling my hair back from my forehead and tucking some behind my ear. I needed to get it cut soon otherwise it would be unfashionably female. Ridiculous really, that there were rules to keeping your hair. I kept up with them in order to retain my place at court, but if I truly had another choice, I would don cloth- easier to wash in river water- and have my hair as long as it wanted to go and tie it up. Thinking of this, I had a flashback of when Marian's hair had been chopped so savagely. Shamefully, I could not remember her crime- some act of disobedience or over-confidence against Vasey- but the stubborn tears that had streaked her pale face still made me cringe inwardly to this day. I swallowed away the memory, tried to banish the sting of guilt I still felt at having done nothing to save her that embarrassment.

Vasey had given me three days off 'to tame my little wifey wife' and I had planned to go with Marian on a ride around Locksley. But not knowing where or how she was stumped this plan. I decided I would go looking for her.

It took half an hour for me to get ready. I put on a black long sleeved top looser than my usual garment but wore my same leather trousers. I chose my roughest riding boots with a rounded toe and tucked a blue scarf into my top (remembering how Marian had liked seeing something other than black on me) then buttoned up a loose, leather and cotton overtop. I had an apple and porridge for breakfast, although I barely concentrated on eating, staring out the door and waiting for Marian to return, silently begging her to so that this painful clenching in my stomach would cease. I hoped she had returned to her father's. I would look there first.

"Will master be requiring my services today?"

I looked away from the door- reluctantly- and saw George, my stable hand. He was older than I but pleasant and skilled enough that I kept him here at Locksley.

"No, George, thank you. Take the next two days off." George looked surprised.

"Thank you, my lord-"

"And take this," I said, walking over to a small chest under the stairs. I took a pouch of brass from it and handed it to him.

"What is this for-"

"Paid absence," I explained. I found myself heartily enjoying the generosity and did not entirely know why I was acting so. When he did not move to take the money, I took his hand and dropped the small bag into it. "If you could take my bowl to the kitchen, though, I would appreciate it," I said and found myself smiling. Odd…

It was as I walked out of the entrance hall, not strapping on my sword belt and feeling happily lighter without it, that I realised the cause of my good nature.

I was married to Marian.

Of course, the marriage did not have the best of starts and I did not know where she was… but still, the achievement made me feel excessively brighter than the weather, which was cooler than yesterday but just as sunny. Three sparrows were roosting on the thatch roof, their chest ruffled and puffed up as they basked in the sun.

I went into the tack room and took a bridle only, wishing to ride bareback. I found saddles cruel to the horse- why should they take more weight than necessary?

A few maids were wandering around the front of the manor, carrying buckets of water and clean bedclothes. I smiled at them and they blinked twice before nervously smiling back.

I took long strides to the stables, now preparing myself for the hunt for Marian. I was going to talk to her. We were going to explain ourselves. I would get her back to Locksley and we would… work something out. Last night was tattered in my mind and somehow Marian's statement had opened a fresh door on our relationship, in my head. I was beginning to have faith, even though my pride was definitely wounded… I would try and contain my temper though and speak with… respect and calmness. She deserved that… no matter her deceit… I still loved her and wanted to protect and provide for her. God would not be disappointed in me this time.

I unbolted the stable door and wrenched it back, making a mental note that I needed to get this door relevelled before winter hit and it would be too stiff to open.

I made two clicking noises in a hushed tone and Grey- 17 hands, dappled grey and a black streak over one black-marble eye- peered over his breakfast of chopped apple and hay. A shuffle and gasp to my right diverted my attention.

Marian

He looked at me as though he did not know who I was. Dark eyebrows drew in together over his wide blue eyes and he dropped the bridle on the floor. He was wearing black, a blue scarf at his neck and his hair unbrushed but… not in a bad way…

His stare was beginning to worry me and I began to defend myself.

"Gu-"

He was over to me in one lunge and his hands were on my cheeks just as fast. Before I could register the feel of his hands, his lips were on mine. One, silent, soft kiss. My hands reached out behind me to touch the stable wall as he inhaled deeply, both his thumbs stroking over my cheekbones.

He pulled away and searched my eyes, daylight shadowed by his body. I was too shocked to pull away, forgetting that Robin's cloak was the only thing keeping my modesty.

I blinked fast and tried to look away from his eyes but his gaze was so intense.

"Is this where you stayed, last night?" he asked, tucking a strand of my long, loose hair behind my ear. I tried very hard not to shiver.

I nodded slightly. He sighed through his mouth and swallowed. He was about to say something he deemed important, I knew it, but a simple urge made me stop him. I lightly pinched his overtop, rubbing the cotton between my index finger and thumb and pulled gently. Both his eyebrows went up a little as he questioned me with his eyes. I pulled again. He stepped closer to me and I timidly raised my chin.

He looked down at me, worried and jaw clenched. I inched my face higher to his and he raised one hand back to my face, fingers on my ear.

I put my lips as close as I could to his without us kissing and he got the message loud and clear this time and wasted not a second more before putting his mouth to mine and nudging my upper lip with his lower one.

Well. This was unexpected.

When he had first kissed me, I had been too stunned to react. Not only was he gentle, he seemed so relieved to see me- not angry. I had been lost in the dark comfort of his body and all the apprehension I had felt all night, curled in the corner of the stable in the hay, at seeing him after our row… after he had shouted at me…

Had dissipated and been transferred into… contentedness.

Now we were kissing again, his lips moving more than the first time, I felt a warmth unfurling through my arms and chest. His arms had moved under mine, holding me to his wide chest and shoulders. The feather light chemise over my chest and torso didn't seem to exist. His body was not heavily pressed against mine, but his body warmth still tingled on my skin. I was grateful his legs did not touch mine, else he would have felt the one or two trembles I could not restrain.

My eyes closed heavily, my sight replaced with the smell of him.

Both of my arms were at my side, limp. I didn't know how far I wanted to go with holding him yet, I was only concerned with his mouth, though why I could not presently say…

His hold on me was more secure than Robin's; stronger. He held on a little too tightly for a few moments, but when I took a deep breath he relaxed too and pulled the corner of my upper lip gently. Our chests grazed against one another's at that and we both shocked ourselves with the contact. This was a kiss not to distract Guy, not to deceive him… I was just so curious as to why I wanted him near me like this.

I tasted a faint, fruity sweetness on his lips that made me instinctively lick. His head jerked back only slightly at the tip of my tongue and I jerked back too, back into a greater sense of reality.

His fingers drew in around my shoulder blades as I inclined my head. I mumbled something to myself as I tried to conclude what this sensation buzzing subtly through my body was. This wasn't fiery passion. Just…

"What did you say?" Guy muttered, his misted eyes observing my mouth with a relaxed veneration.

"Nothing," I lied and I gently but forcibly pushed him away from me.

"Marian-"

"I think I need to get dressed," I interrupted, not looking him in the eye.

"Of course… your clothes are in my chambers, I'll get a maid-"

"I can dress myself." His hand went to my waist but I skirted around him, drawing Robin's cloak around my body as I skittered to the entrance hall and then hurried up the stairs.

What had I silently mumbled to myself? What word was now scaring me, confusing me so desperately?

Home. I had said 'home' in answer to my questions of why I was content in Guy's arms.

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><p>Wuh-oh, is Marian beginning to like Guy? Is she falling for him?<p>

Guy: Is she?

Please rate and review ^.^

Guy: IS SHE?


	5. Fluttered

Guy: IS SHE?

Hello kindly returning readers, nice to see you here. Thank you all so much for the supportive subscriptions to this story and the favouriting. Also thank you for the kind reviews, **please review** if you want to ^.^

Guy: *Holds a sword to author's neck* Is. She. Beginning. To. Like. Me...?

*Writes that guy is wearing a pink net tutu over his black leathers, a headband with reindeer antlers and a piece of glossy holly on his nose*

Guy: Fancy clothing won't stop my blade-

*Writes that the sword is actually a microphone and he's got ten seconds to start SingStar-ing along to 'Why Do You Build Me Up'*

Guy: What the-

Buttercup?

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><p><span>Marian<span>

My hands clenched and unclenched as I wandered around Guy's chamber, my heart retorting in palpitating patters that made me swallow and gasp slightly once or twice.

"He's killed people," I muttered to myself. _YOU may have killed at least two people, with your Night Watchman antics_, came an annoying voice in my head.

"He's… he's…"

Two sharp knocks came on the closed door.

"Marian, are you alright?" Somehow his tone sounded more threatening than worried.

"Quite well, Sir Guy. Just having a little struggle with these strings," I lied, staring at the door and hoping against hope he did not open it to find I was still in my chemise and braies, Robin's hooded cloak thrown almost adulterously over the newly made bed.

"I could come in and help-"

"No need! Fixed!"

Silence. I fiddled with my right thumb with my right hand up by my chest.

"I shall wait downstairs."

Guy

I sat at the table in the entrance hall cum dining hall, unconsciously biting my thumbnail as I stared at the doorway to the stables beyond. Birdsong still fluttered indoors and the day was just as sunny. But…

Was it possible for emotions to be _this_ confused? Or, indeed, confusing?

I had kissed Marian. She had kissed me back. It had been… beautiful. Almost everything I had been hoping for in the least for the past two years. Yet...

No. I would not let a little insecurity damage this estival warmth in my body. I would think these emotions as a festival, not a funeral, of feelings. No happiness had died after the kiss. This was… natural for Marian.

That she had slept in the stables, though, sooner than she would sleep in with me, let alone in the house…

That was worrying. I… it hurt a lot to think about that.

"Sir Guy." Her voice was quiet and anxious. I turned in my chair and watched her come down the stairs, her red dress slightly pinched at the waist and around her stomach and her once almost exposed breasts now hidden behind a cerise bodice lined with black. Her glossy brown hair was draped over one shoulder in a ponytail. Still stunning, no matter the added attire.

I stood from my chair.

"Marian, you need not call me Sir."

She opened her mouth to debate this, but closed it when a maid passed through.

"I need to talk with you," she said, even quieter. I looked at her, deeply enthralled that she had even come back. That she had returned my kiss- my relieved, spontaneous, essential kiss- was gold, but now putting effort into talking things through… A trap?

Then it hit me. Why she had returned. Why she was putting effort into this.

I doubt she had been in the stables for more than a couple of hours.

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><p>Ok, so there it is, a relatively short chapter I know. Please review ^.^<p>

Guy: That ending was because of the sword incident, wasn't it?

*Sarcastic* No, Guy, that was because I just love you ever so much.

Guy: Well, actually, it's obvious you do otherwise you wouldn't be writing fanfiction about me.

*BlinkBlink*

Guy: Gotcha *Guy-smirk and turns to swagger away*

I'll give you another kiss with Marian if you return.

Guy: Ah, but how can I be sure it will be reciprocated? *continues to swagger down stone castle corridor*

Marian will be jealous about you... soon?

Guy: *pauses in corridor and clears throat as he pivots*

I'll get you a hat... a really big one.

Guy: *Incredulous, not understanding _Pirates Of The Caribbean_ reference*

*Wide eyes* Hood in chains.

Guy: *Lowers his head with his intense glare still on me, clarifying with his hand in front of him* The kiss still included?

*Nods*

Guy: *In style of gameshow host* Please rate and review!


	6. Guise

Helloooo, chapter number 5 is here!

Guy: I think you'll find this is chapter number 6.

Oh... well, either way, I hope you enjoy this and feel a need to review!

Guy: I better get those chains.

I had guessed you were into all that.

Guy: All what? Oh, you mean... *evil smirk... then* no, no, no! I meant with Hood.

Ahhh, I get it: you don't hate the dude, you lust after him!

Guy: Dude?

I've just said you have the hots for Hood and you're concentrating on my vernacular?

Guy: Well it's obvious I don't love Hood-

Guy and Robin sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-

Guy: *Looking darkly down at the floor* stop that.

*Sigh* You're no fun.

* * *

><p><span>Guy<span>

Once oneiric, now corybantic, my anger flew out of me.

I felt my chest rise out and my jaw clenched so tight it ached, but I did not care.

"Up!" I yelled to Marian. She flinched and looked at the doorway and almost made to try and get past me, but I took her arm and shoved her to the stairway. A maid peeked her head around the doorway leading into the pantry. I would not let them see this. I would not be the tongue to quill gossip on the Gisbourne household. "To my chambers," I hissed. Her eyes widened.

"Guy, please-"

My lip twitched.

"I will not hurt you," I promised.

"Then let us talk here." She looked worried, no matter her defiance.

I spun from her on the spot and ran a hand through my hair, infuriated. I had once again I had been fooled. But the term of my naivety was shorter than before; an improvement. I sat slowly back down on my chair, leaned forward with my elbows on my knees and held my hands together, virtually in prayer.

"Elsbeth," I called, to the maid. She skipped out.

"M'lord?" All curds and way when there was gossip to be had…

"Leave." My tone must've been darker than I had intended because I heard her gulp before she left the Manor. She put a bowl of cherries on the table as I had asked her to whilst Marian was dressing- I thought it would aid our troubles, somehow, to retry the fruit. As the rustling of the maid's skirts left my ears, I gazed upward to Marian who was frozen on the spot. She looked down at me.

"I will leave if you shout at me," she pronounced. I blinked.

"Back to Hood, then?"

"Guy, you really must get over-"

I bolted from my chair and took the stairs three at a time to get to my chamber. Banging open the door I searched hurriedly around to see where she had stashed the cloak I had seen her in this morning. At first it had just been a cloak, but when the frenzy of realisation had hit me, that item had been vivid in my discernment.

I opened a wardrobe, threw dresses and skirts aside. I looked on the bed, under the covers… under the bed…

I was back downstairs in less than forty seconds, the green cloak in my fist.

"Is _this_ evidence enough?" I barked, staring her down now that she had sat herself in my chair. Her hands were placed ever so placidly in her lap and she gave me a leveled look.

"A hooded cloak? What, simply because it has a hood it is proof-"

I pulled the two sides of the hood and pointed at the dangling piece of brown leather than hung from the adjustment string.

"A token of his gang, no? This would be Hood's tailored shawl?"

She observed it with wide eyes. Her nostrils flared slightly before she looked down at her lap.

"I was unaware-"

"Oh, Marian," I grieved, body falling onto the wooden stair behind me. I dropped my head into my hands, the scrunched up cloak pressing sorely on my forehead.

"Guy… Guy, are you quite well?" She paused as I inhaled deeply. "Last night was heated, to say the least and I fear my running only worsened the situation-"

"Say it again."

"Say what again?"

"That you don't love me." I moved my boot and was ever so faintly interested in the print it left on the dusty floorboard.

"I did not mean-"

"Marian," I sighed, heavily. I raised my head- I would watch her as she said it again.

"Why?"

"Some ounce of truth will purge this grot of grief." Her eyebrows knitted together at this and she flexed her fingers outward before holding them together much as I had done.

"I do not love you."

I morphed my anger into impassioned persuasion, quickly. Desperately.

"You do not have to! Let this be a companionship instead." Anything, anything to have her near me. God, I was all over the place.

"But… But you love me," she almost whispered. "It would be cruel to have you as a husband and not-"

I sighed.

"How do you know I love you? Truly, I could have been lying." Yes, nice tactic. We could be companions as husband and wife… yes… yes…

"I don't think you lied about that. Love is not a bad thing, Guy- do not make it out to be."

"You would know the pleasures..."

"Of?"

Marian

"Love." Again he tested me about Robin.

"I love my fath-"

"Oh, please! It's Robin Hood, packmaster of the outlaws, who you think of. At night."

"I think of his treason and idiocy-"

"You love him. You two have been swooning over eachother since before he went to the Holy lands. I was there in your childhood too, Marian, however distantly. Don't forget that." A lanky boy with shorter dark hair and jealous blue eyes flashed in my mind.

"We were children-"

"And now you are adults."

"I am not with him."

Guy

I walked over to her, hating the way her shoulders raised and her hands clenched. I sat on the corner of the oak table and leaned over to take some fruit.

Bending over to her, I hung a pair of cherries over her ear and admired the contrast of the purplish red against her pale skin.

"Not in this hour, no. But swear by God you will not meet with him, hooded at Nottingham. Swear it."

Marian

I did not move as he placed the cherries over my ear and anticipated a stroke of his finger. But he left the cherries there as he spoke. _I am not with him_… it was not such a lie. It was truthful- at that present moment I was not with Robin.

"Not in this hour, no." Guy's voice was tormentfully calm. His erratic behaviour was starting to worry me greatly. "But swear by God that you will not meet with him, hooded at Nottingham." I dared myself to look up at him as he sat ever so proudly on the edge of the table. But his eyes were not smug. They were somber and mournful. Again I spotted the feline poise of his body, the elegant flick of his eyelids. But feline and predatory fell under the same guise. "Swear it."

How he had known that I had planned to meet Robin in Nottingham was beyond me. I put it to a lucky guess. An image of Robin in front of the castle doors, chained to some tortuous contraption of the Sherriff's invention almost made me convulse.

"I swear it, Guy."

Guy closed his eyes, his hand moved from his knee as though he was about to raise it to hit me and I prepared myself to grab his wrist-

But his hand only moved to take the cherries from my ear.

He yanked the stems apart roughly and offered one to me. I took it, trying not to be open about how nervous I felt sitting there. He considered me before he put the other cherry in his mouth.

"You cannot lie forever, Marian," he declared. He bent down and leisurely placed a kiss behind my ear. I closed my eyes, ignoring the shiver the kiss elicited and heard his footsteps disappear as he left the Manor.

_Watch me_.

* * *

><p>Guy: An imagined image of Hood in chains? That's what you gave me?<p>

Hey, you got a behind-the-ear kiss... that's cool!

Guy: Yeah, it was cool... but I was promised chains. We had an agreement and you failed to meet-

We didn't specify specifics.

Guy: *Raises sword to author's neck again* I'm not really in the specifics business.

*Rolls eyes at corny bad-guy line and writes that the sword is a microphone again*

Guy: What the-

Alicia Keys or Britney Spears *Big smile*?


	7. Sweet But Bloody

Chapter Seven.

Please review ^.^

This chapter is from Guy's perspective, so anything Marian does is interpreted by him; hence, anything that is out of character for her will be understood once we see some of Marian's POV : )

* * *

><p>The squalor of the town was almost as offensive as the beauty that had been mangled through the gates.<p>

Guy, perched on a wooden stake, took a crunchy bite of his green apple and surveyed the market outside the castle. Seething. The apple's juices slid around his tongue, tasting like blood and sugar combined; as though he was sucking an iron fetter that had been dipped in honey.

_Honey,_ Guy thought. _Is that what she tastes of? My wife? Is that the elixir of her pleasure?_

The villagers buzzed around him, muttering curses, or was it mirth? Guy could no longer decipher.

He was in a shadow, sunken beneath his aching, numbing wrath. A green dress walked past him; nothing velvet or silk- cotton, but rough, too rough against that milky skin. Guy was already drunk on fury, would it be right to drink from another goblet? In truth, a swig of lust had generally always sobered him up.

"Are you sure those belong to you?" It was easy, too easy, to have the girl turn like a deer turns to the purr of a tiger. He unleashed his lust and let it swill in the air as he took a last bite of his apple and threw it to the side before standing up and looking down at the girl from two feet above her. She was unspeakably aroused in seconds, loathing herself for it but a victim nonetheless to the aching pulse in her stomach, the heat prickling her thighs.

"I haven't stolen anything," the girl spoke, defiantly, as she focused on the ground. She rested a basket between a well-rounded hip and her elbow.

"You haven't stolen anything..." Guy prompted.

"Sir Guy."

"Very good," Guy mocked. He swallowed and gritted his teeth, running his gloved hand over the two-day-old black stubble on his face; he hadn't returned to Locksley Manor for more than three days now. "How old are you?" he whispered. Sunlight glinted on the girl's dark blonde hair, spotlighting the tea-coloured freckles over her smooth slope of a nose.

"Just past sixteen, Sir Guy." Guy leaned forward, the merciless, ugly predator inside him going for the kill. He could almost smell her-

When his conscience kicked in. Sixteen? What kind of animal was he? Certainly not a man- Lucifer would have enjoyed having him under his filthy, black-feathered wing. Then he remember who his employer was; he wasn't too far off it.

But sixteen wasn't the reason he hindered his advances. He was married now- he was tied to Marian. He would at least try to stay faithful, no matter how tightly clamped her thighs were.

"Walk on," Guy said, gruff. As she hurried on, a pear fell from the basket. Swiftly, Guy picked it up and with as warm a smile as he could manage, he tapped the girl on the shoulder and handed it to her. "My ap-" he was about to apologise for her lecherous behaviour, but when he spotted Vasey striding towards him, he simply threw the pear back in the basket and pushed her lower back. "Off before the Sheriff finds an excuse to puppet you." She scampered.

"Gisbourne- lovely morning, isn't it," Vasey croaked, vicious eyes scrutinising Guy as his lips spread into that bitingly joyous grin. His beard was just as silver as the scabbard hilted at his waist. "And yet here you are, with these vermin. Where's that spitting spider of yours?"

"My Lord...?"

"Your wife, Gisbourne. Is she tangled in one of her webs, one of her eight legs chopped off? I'm sure she has as many of her limbs in as many pies as possible... do spiders like pies?"

"I'm not sure they've been known to, Sheriff." Marian appeared at Guy's side, her square-necked turquoise bodice bringing out the green in her eyes. "May I borrow my husband from you? Or are three days not enough to pilfer?" Her words were just like his eaten apple- sweet but bloody. Vasey licked his lower lip, eyes glinting before they dulled and set on Guy.

"Go on- go off with that _wife_ of yours. Surely you both have _duties_ to attend to. I'll see you-" he narrowed his eyes- "later." He sent a spiky grin at Marian, who took Guy's arm and pulled him away. When they had crossed the bridge, she spoke.

"Have you cooled down now?" she interrogated, moving her lips as little as she could. Guy was too entranced with the chestnut highlights in her loose hair to answer. "Guy!" she hissed. She let go of his arm and stood facing him.

"Why are you here?" Guy asked, studying her body for any signs of Hood.

"To find you."

"You must have known where I was, Marian. You're here for the outlaw- poor you, you get a legal spouse instead."

"Guy... we are married now," Marian spoke softly, eyes flicking to the peasants wandering around.

"Mm... two more months and that may not be-"

"I am aware of my duty." Guy's pupils widened. A lock of his oily black hair fell over his eyes. "You need a bath." Guy licked his incisor tooth and looked towards the castle. Large, grey, cold, stony...

"I don't need to return home for that."

"I am trying, here, Guy. Do me the honour, the service of reciprocating."

"I did try. You ran."

"And you think this consistent sourness is a mature reaction? You seem to have enough decorum for a milkmaid and yet not for me."

"You were spying on me?" He was bemused.

"I thought someone should, not for your own good but the welfare of innocent-"

"I wouldn't have done anything." Guy's voice was fierce.

"You've been drinking."

"No, I haven't. This is me angry and sober, Marian. _Frustrated_."

"Walk with me." She said no more and strode across the grass towards the forest. Leashed, Guy followed.

"What do you want, Marian?"

"You home. So both of our reputations aren't sullied."

"So this is just about reputation."

"Amongst other things." Guy glared to his left, causing a passing boy to flinch and sprint off. "Guy, I... I _want_ to try..." Guy looked at her and was surprised to see her eyes on his chest, of all places- was she blushing?

"Hood abandon you, did he?" Guy poked, maliciously.

"I left him." Marian's voice was plain and honest as she looked him straight in the eye, coldly.

"You wouldn't leave his cause so easily."

"It isn't easy. I'm asking for a friend, here."

"You're playing my weaknesses like a lute because you need me properly buttered up so you can-"

"Get away with anything I want? Fine, Guy, fine." Her eyes spat like boiling water. "I admit it. There, okay?" They were a metre from the wall of trees now. "I tried to fool you."

"It worked," Guy revealed, a slither of hurt cutting down one of his stygian eyes.

"Don't you dare play the wounded samaritan here." Marian began to walk through the trees. Guy followed.

"You'll ruin your dress."

"Oh, you'd loathe a ripped dress, wouldn't you?" Her words stunned Guy.

"Marian, what's going on? Why are..."

"Just come home, would you?" She stood and faced him, eyes slipping worriedly around the forest as the sunlight fluttered through the canopy of cloven leaves. Guy smelled a rat. A big one. He inched towards Marian, eyes melting as he came to within an inch of her body.

"This is a trap, isn't it?" he whispered, smiling. Marian's lip trembled as she stared at the ground. Guy reached out and curled a strand of hair behind her reddening ear. Wearing his glove, he could not feel her heat, which benefitted both of them for the time being.

"No." Marian's voice was strong as stone as she stared up at him. They were locked thus for immeasurable moments. Guy felt his soul, or whatever it was inside him, coiling towards Marian, begging him to move closer. He couldn't be angry at her for much longer. It was impossible. A breeze nipped at Marian's bare arms and she wrapped her arms over her chest, though it wasn't really that cold.

She was hurt; Guy could see that much. She wanted him. He was hers.

"You were saying something about buttering..." Guy whispered, taking a step back.

"No, you said that." She had not smiled once this whole time.

"Well, let's hear you say it," Guy said and he walked up a small ramp. "Let's to Locksley."

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><p>Review please : )<p> 


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